Bakery to open on site of former pub

At the height of their decline, pubs were closing at the rate of 35 a week thanks to the introduction of the smoking ban.

That has now slowed down to 12 boozers a week now shutting up shop.

But, in the ultimate sign-of-the-times, one bakery chain is benefiting from the slowdown in British pubs.

Le Pain Quotidien, the BB75 Belgian bakery and café concept, is set to open its first bakery in a former pub, after taking on the lease of an Enterprise Inns-owned site in North London

The chain, which earlier this year opened its 20th site in the UK, in Soho’s Wardour Street, is believed to have secured a lease on the Rose & Crown in Highgate, according to M&C Report, a sister title of British Baker.

The company, which was founded in Brussels by chef Alain Coumont in 1990, is set to re-open the site over the summer. The bakery-café group currently operates more than 170 shops in 26 cities and 16 countries worldwide.